The Truth Remains
by smartkid37
Summary: What happens when Tim has time to think about what he's doing at the end of "Freedom"?  WARNING: Spoiler Alert!   Episode Tag: Designated Target
1. Chapter 1

The elevator doors close and it is just Tim, Tony and Nick Miller, the little spoiled brat who'd had too much unsupervised time on his hands as well as unlawful access to the apartment complex keys, thanks to his mother who just happened to be Tim's landlady, riding in the car as it took them down to the street level to sign out. And while Tony had egged Tim on to stop being so responsible for a moment and just go with the idea of escaping to goof off with him and the little crime bandit; Tim's better judgment was now careening around the corner, screeching in his ear that he knew better and it didn't matter what Tony's opinion was because Tony always skated by with Gibbs and Tim never could.

With Tim, things were different. Tim was held more accountable for his actions and what's more, he didn't even like this kid. What Nick had done was criminal, pure and simple. So criminal, in fact, Tim had been close to becoming embroiled in an active investigation into identity theft at the hands of the FBI because of it; as their main suspect, instead of the innocent victim he'd been! It could have ruined his career! And besides, wrong was wrong and skipping out on work, especially without the boss' okay, was definately wrong!

It was not surprise that Tony was taking it so lightly, as if it hadn't mattered that what this kid had done was illegal enough it would have landed him in jail, had he been old enough to serve the time. After all, it hadn't been Tony's apartment the kid had snuck into repeatedly; it wasn't Tony's computer that had been hacked into. And it wasn't Tony who'd had thousands of dollars of charges rung up on his credit cards! Why would Tony take it seriously? After all, he was too damn busy getting a kick out of Tim's problems; again!

The more he thought about it as they rode the elevator down together; with Tony and this brilliant smart ass of a criminal in sneakers who hadn't even made it out of junior high yet, talking and cutting up like they were the best of friends; and Tim silently pondering what he was allowing himself to be drug into and let this kid get away with; the more angry Tim got.

It wasn't helping that Tim was mentally head slapping himself now because he knew he should have been more careful with his identity and information, that he'd had this happen before when that crazy woman had stolen his mail and taken credit cards out in his name, just for the kick of it a couple of years ago.

All of this was whirling around in his head and amping the anger that had been steadily getting hotter as this problem had escalated throughout the last couple of days. When the elevator stopped on the floor they needed to sign the kid out, Tim's feet remained rooted to the floor in the elevator.

"Probie! You comin'?" Tony asked impatiently.

"No, Tony. No, I'm not. I've got work to finish up back up at my desk." Tim answered quietly.

"Seriously, Probie? You've given up your moment of spontaneity?" Tony goaded him mercilessly. "You've decided to go back to being predictable and boring already?"

"Yeah, Tony. I have. I shouldn't have let you talk me into it in the first place. Thank you for finding out who was doing this to me, I appreciate it very much, but I can't skip out on my responsibilities just to go do something different. Besides, after I finish my work here, I have a police report to file. The truth remains, DiNozzo, that what he did was criminal" Tim answered pointedly.

"Say what?" Tony asked incredulously.

"Wait a minute! Are you seriously gonna file charges against me?" Nick demanded daringly.

"Yeah, I am. What you did was criminal. We hunt criminals and put them behind bars for a living. If I let you get by with what you've done, I wouldn't be doing my job of upholding the law. Not all of us find it funny because the criminal in this case happens to still be in short pants!" Tim bit out angrily, as he glared at both the half-pint and Tony in turn.

"But..." the kid objected.

"No buts! You may have thought it was a real practical joke and a whole lotta fun, but it was wrong and you knew it. You could have cost me my job, my reputation, everything! And for what? Because you were bored? Because you wanted to show me up? Well, I'm sorry, but that's not good enough. You're old enough to face the consequences of your behavior and it would be wrong of me to sit back and let you get by with it! I'll be in touch with your mother as soon as I file the report." Tim answered.

It was with the greatest feeling of satisfaction that Tim pushed the button to close the elevator doors between himself and the now slack-jawed Tony and juvenile delinquent alike, a firm line drawn between the truth and the arrogance of wrong.


	2. Epilogue

_Inspired by all the readers who found much to complain about with the first chapter. Thank you for your inspiration_

_Dedicated to those who encouraged me to take this further. Thank you so much.__  
_

_Epilogue_

"Where's DiNozzo and McGee?" Gibbs demanded as he strode into the squad room, several minutes after the elevator doors had closed, taking the agents in question down to street level with the kid who Tony had discovered, had been the person behind Tim's recent financial crisis.

"They have gone for the evening, Gibbs." Ziva admitted, knowing he was going to dig until he got the truth from her and no matter how long she'd tried to stall, he would have still been angry with the men for ditching work like they had.

"I don't recall telling anyone they were done yet." The boss remarked almost offhandedly, although his tone left no doubt he was quite unhappy at this news.

"Apparently, Tony discovered and located the culprit behind McGee's financial troubles. He brought him here to work things out between him and McGee."

Gibbs glared at her, silently demanding her to finish what she had to say.

"He is a boy, Gibbs. The person responsible for hacking into McGee's personal information and charging his credit card for a total of almost $10,000 is a twelve year old boy; the son of McGee's landlady. Apparently, the woman does not keep a close eye on her son. He knows where she keeps the keys to the apartments and has taken advantage of her lack of supervision. Using his time to keep track of McGee's movements and gain knowledge of his working schedule has obviously proven to be quite profitable for this young man." Ziva explained.

"Doesn't explain why they're not still working, Da'vid." Gibbs growled even as his brain worked to process everything she'd just told him.

"Well, it would seem that Tony, in his quest to get McGee, to lighten up, has talked him into accompanying him and the young man to a place he called 'Game Stop."

The dinging of the elevator interrupted anything either of them were going to say next. As Tim stepped off and walked back toward his desk, the sight of Gibbs standing there looking very ticked off, stopped the younger agent in his tracks. "Boss, I'm sorry; a moment of weakness. I promise, it won't happen again." Tim offered as he hurried back to his desk and immediately dove back into his work, without hesitation.

Gibbs couldn't help the smirk that crossed his face. He knew Tim's conscious was bugging him for even thinking of ditching work. That didn't take care of DiNozzo's attitude. The boss had half a mind to call the 'kid' back here but then thought better of it. _No, let Dinozzo have his fun tonight. The consequences could wait. They were sometimes better served cold anyway_. _Funny, wasn't that what they said about revenge, too?_

* * *

"Go home!" Gibbs called after glancing at his watch sometime later and noticing that it was going on seven. Standing up from his desk, he snatched up his coffee cup and headed out for a refill.

Ziva closed down her work station and picked up her rucksack, glancing over at Tim as she rounded her desk to head out.

"McGee, are you not leaving?" she asked in surprise.

"Not yet, Ziva. I've got some stuff to finish up, first." Tim answered "Have a good night."

"You too. Do not stay too late!"

"I'll be fine. See you tomorrow." Tim replied as he steadily kept typing.

"Tomorrow." Ziva offered in return before she headed over to the elevator and let it take her down for the night.

After a minute, he minimized his windows on his monitor and bolted up the stairs. As much as he hated the idea, he had to talk to the Director about this.

Thirty minutes later foundTim returning to the squad room and once again getting busy on typing something up on his computer.

Tim quietly huffed out a sigh of relief as he steadily worked on the report he needed to file. He'd talked it over with Director Vance, to solidify his stand on this and his forthcoming actions. He couldn't help but replay the short but vital conversation he'd just had with the man, after he'd emailed his assistant and asked for a short meeting with him and received a reply to get up there right away before the man left for the night.

_Agent McGee, what can I do for you?_

_Sir, I'd like your permission; I need your permission to use the Agency's resources to compile and complete a personal police report." Tim shot straight for the whole truth, not wanting to waste the man's time._

"_I'm listening." Vance answered seriously._

"_Sir, I discovered someone had been using my name and personal information to charge almost $10,000 worth of things to my credit cards. The person responsible has been tracked down and I need to make copies and put together a solid case and file the police report. I'm asking if you'll allow me to do that here, where I can make the copies and scan them into an actual case file, even though it's strictly personal." Tim explained._

"_Almost ten thousand dollars?"_

"_Yes, Sir."_

"_You say the person responsible's been found?"_

"_Yes, Sir."_

"_Who was it?"_

"_My landlady's twelve year old son. Apparently, he knows where she keeps the apartment complex keys."_

"_That explains how__ he was able to get into your apartment. Doesn't explain how he was able to access your accounts. __You leave your passwords, account numbers and pin numbers just lying around at home, McGee?__" __Vance asked doubtfully._

"_I'll admit, Sir, there were times, I was lax with __making sure those sites didn't keep me logged in or keep me 'remembered'. And I'll admit there were times I was lax about logging off my c__omputer at home. Trust me, I won't be making th__ose__ mistake__s__ again."_

"_I see. And you want to see this kid prosecuted."_

"_I'm not enjoying this, but I can't just let him get away with it. It's our job to put adult versions of him away. His age just makes it a bigger risk that he'll be up to even more criminal activity by the time he's an adult." Tim reasoned._

"_Relax, McGee, you don't have to defend your decision to me__. I agree with you. God only knows what I'd do if Jared did something like this. I'd certainly want to know about it. Did you contact the mother?"_

"_The person who found out who it was, must have."_

"_Why do you say that?"_

"_Because he was brought here so I could meet him."_

"_Who brought him here?"_

"_Tony. Apparently, He was able to piece enough information together from the information on the credit card slip enclosed with one of the items __this kid __purchased and __had __sent to me __to make his point__, to figure out what was going on. I guess, I let myself get distracted by… well, I should have looked closer and figured it out for myself, but I didn't. I messed up."_

"_You're human, McGee. What did this kid have to say?"_

"_He said it was fraud and I was only liable for 50 bucks and to talk to his mom about getting that back. He said he did it because I was too predictable. Apparently, he thought he had a right to shake things up for me in his bounty of spare time with no supervision."_

"_No remorse?"_

"_None. Gloating. Plenty of gloating" Tim answered in annoyance. " Almost like a junior version of Tony." Tim muttered before he realized what he was saying. "Oh, God. I'm sorry, Director, I didn't mean to say that. It was just so obvious in his attitude; his cockiness and quick comeback about how much it was gonna cost me in the end, that this kid's done this before. He's got access to the entire apartment complex with those keys. I just don't want anyone else becoming victim to this. They may not figure out who's doing it and wouldn't be able to get it straighted out. The FBI was talking about looking at me as a suspect in their Identity Theft Ring because of this. I can't just let him __go through life thinking this is okay__."_

"_Nothing to ignore. Go ahead, put your report together. You're probably right; this kid's done this to more than just you. And you're also right that you wouldn't be doing your job or the right thing, if you didn't do something to put a stop to it. I'll support you. Just make sure you don't link the Agency to it, other than the fact that you work here. Give me a copy of it when you're done."_

"_Thank you, Sir." Tim offered as he turned to leave, reaching for the door handle._

"_You're welcome. Oh and Agent McGee." Vance replied._

"_Sir?" Tim stopped and looked back at him._

"_Check the surveillance tapes for the squad room while the kid was here. You may be able to use his body language to proof his guilt, innocence or at least his indifference to his actions. Having it on tape would at least prove to the mother that her son needs help."_

"_Thank you, Sir. I'll do that."_

"_Go on and don't forget to get a copy of it to me when you're finished."_

"_I won't forget, Sir. Thank you again." Tim offered as he left the office; the weight of worry about repercussions gone off his shoulders._

Now, backed fully by the support of head of the Agency, Tim got to work; making copies of what he needed to, typing up what was necessary and compiling all the evidence he had.

While he worked, Tim thought about the things that had transpired in the course of the last week. He'd been slack in his own personal security measures to safeguard himself against what he'd just gone through. He'd gotten too cocky and lazy and he'd paid the price. But, he wasn't the one who'd handed the kid the keys to the apartment complex. He wasn't the one who'd left the kid with nothing to do in his spare time but cause trouble for other people.

Being a Scout Leader, Tim knew the signs of a kid without the loving support of an available father and he knew how to tell when a kid didn't have any supervision at all; desperate for attention. But, he also knew that none of those reasons excused criminal behavior, especially from a cocky kid who didn't care what damage he'd done. There had been not an ounce of remorse in that young man's voice or expression; only gloating. Maybe if there'd been some genuine remorse; an attempt to make things right; Tim would have considered taking the 'big brother' road with him. But his hard-ass attitude had earned him the 'tough love' road instead.

What Nick had done was criminal, dangerous and stupid. Any officer of the law worth their salt would do something to make sure this kid stopped this destructive behavior now before it led him to bigger and worse crimes and a lifetime behind bars. Tim was determined to do what was right.

It didn't surprise Tim that Tony had been able to get Nick to the Agency. If the landlady was negligent enough that her son found time to break into apartments; he was probably loafing around or worse, back in McGee's apartment going at his accounts again, at the time Tony'd found him to begin with. Tim was grateful that his teammate had taken the time to catch the clues that Tim had been too overly upset and stressed out to see, and figure out who'd been behind this mess

The fact that Tony had stood there laughing and agreeing with Nick, even smugly offering Tim a 'you're welcome' after taking the time to track the culprit down, twisted Tim's gut. Why did Tony always have to temper a good deed with a bucket full of humiliation and childishness? Then again, Tony would never change, never giving much consideration to the line between funny and cruel when he crossed. It. Tim wondered how the Senior Field Agent would have handled it if the shoe had been on the other foot. What would Tony have said or felt or done if the kid had done this crap to him?

Actually, Tim was glad it hadn't happened to Tony. Despite the crappy way Tony tended to treat him at least half-a-dozen times a week, he still loved him like a brother and would take a bullet for him any day of the week. Somewhere, down below all that bullying and brashness, Tim knew Tony felt the same way about him. No, this crap that Tim had gotten caught up in shouldn't happen to anyone else. It was certainly no fun.

Tim was just as irked with himself for that moment of weakness that had allowed him to fall in line with Tony's scheme to ditch work and go hang out with Nick; the 'Junior DiNozzo'. He was only able to forgive himself that slip in his morals because he'd found the strength to pick them back up and straighten back in line with what he truly believed was right and gotten back to work in such a short order of time. Tony could handle his own choices, Tim was not associating himself with that situation.

Gibbs returned to the squad room and was not happy to see the young man still here instead of taking advantage of the early night he'd given them.

"McGee! What the hell are you still doin' here?" he barked at him.

"Boss, I have to finish this report. I'll be done in a little bit, then I'll go." Tim offered sincerely.

"Make sure that you are, McGee!" Gibbs growled as he closed up his own work station and headed out, suddenly wanting to take advantage of the early night himself.

"Yes, Boss."

"McGee." The boss stopped in front of Tim's desk.

"Boss?" Tim stopped what he was doing and looked at the man in confusion.

"Mind telling me why that Case File I told you to have Tony sign the other night, didn't get signed and dated until the next day?"

"I couldn't reach him on his cell and he wasn't home, Boss." Tim answered, short and to the point.

"Hmm. That right?" the boss asked almost nonchalantly.

"I'm sorry, Boss. I tried." The agent offered.

Gibbs nods his head and heads on out. Before he reaches the elevator his phone rings. Not bothering to look at the caller id, he flips it open.

"Yeah Gibbs."

"_You might wanna stick around and offer McGee some advice. It's not every day he has to press felony charges against a kid. I'm sure he could use help to make __sure he doesn't start second guessing himself or letting any sense of guilt cloud his__ judgment on the __police __report he's __filling out__."_ Vance's voice came through the line unexpectedly.

Gibbs snapped his phone shut and turned back around, standing still as he watched Tim work. Sure enough, the slouched shoulders and the intermittent stopping and wiping his hands across his face, breathing in deeply, and shakily letting it back out all looked like having a battle with his conscious. _So, McGee's pressing charges against his landlady's kid, huh? Yeah, knowing McGee, he just might be second guessing that one. Pretty obviously the case if he's let Vance in on what he's doing._

Without wasting any more time, Gibbs walked back over to the young man's desk. "McGee."

"Boss?"

"What are you working on?"

Taking yet another deep breath and slowly letting it out, Tim looked his boss square on. "Boss…."

* * *

Driving into work the next morning, three hours before the work day began, Tim was happily content to pretty much have the road to himself; since he preferred the secondary roads rather than drive the beltway anywhere in D.C . As he drove, his mind filtered back through the events of the hours after Gibbs had listened to Tim explain what he was doing and why.

_**Flashback**_

"_Good."_

"_Good? So, you don't think it's my own fault for not being more careful about locking up my computer or paying closer attention to my bank and credit card statements?"_

"_Sounds like you've got __accepting responsibility for __that pretty well covered, McGee. What's your plan for talking to your landlady about her son's crimes?"_

"_I...I don't have a plan, yet, Boss."_

"_Good."_

"_Good?"_

"_Something wrong with your hearing, Tim?" __Gibbs quipped with a smirk._

"_No. No, Boss." __Tim answered quickly._

_Gibbs smirked as he took out his cell phone and hit a button for a speed dialed call. "Hey. Need you to come by my office. Now would be good. Thanks."_

"_Boss?"_

"_C'mon, McGee. I'll buy you a cup of coffee. We've got time."_

"_Uhm. Okay. Thanks." Tim answered as he got up and walked with Gibbs – to the break room._

_Twenty rather quiet minutes later, Tobias Fornell arrived in the squad room and was handed a copy of the police report; a copy with Tim's name and other personal information blackened out – by Gibbs._

"_This is why you called me, Jethro?" the older man questioned with a touch of disbelief._

"_Yep. Might wanna read this real carefully, Tobias." Gibbs answered calmly._

_Tim watched closely as the FBI Agent had read the police report on Nick Miller's happy and rather reckless parade through Tim's financial accounts. It was satisfying to see the older man become increasingly and obviously upset with every additional line of print he read._

"_Is this a joke? This is a joke, right? Jethro, it's not April Fools Day. What the hell's going on? Why would someone do this and why do you have it?"_

"_This is right up your alley, isn't it, Tobias?" Gibbs asked while keeping his voice calm._

"_You know it is."_

"_Okay. Someone hands you this case, what's your next move?"_

"_First thing I'd do is have a good ole fashioned talk with the mother." __Fornell answered immediately._

"_Good. Let's go." __Gibbs said as he moved to walk out with his friend._

"_Excuse me?" __Fornell stopped in his tracks_

"_Let's go. You and me."_

"_Why you?" __The FBI Agent asked suspiciously._

"_I wanna know for sure that it gets dealt with tonight." __Gibbs answered with a straight face._

"_Why? You still haven't told me what this even has to do with you. Don't tell me the victim in this report is you!" __Fornell declared incredulously,_

_Gibbs shook his head and jerked his thumb in Tim's direction at which point, Tim ducked his head in embarrassment."_

"_McGee? Let me get this straight; your computer hacker got hacked; by a kid?" __Mr. FBI couldn't help but get his fun out of that moment of shock._

"_You think this is funny, Fornell? __He didn't hand the kid the keys to his apartment!__ I think you'd better read through those charges again." Gibbs bit out._

"_You're right. It's not funny. Just give me the address and I promise you, it will get taken care of tonight." __Fornell answered apologetically._

_Gibbs nodded and gave him a copy of the report with all the formally blackened out info filled in. "Address is right there. Keep me updated."_

"_Sure."_

"_Thanks, Forenell."_

"_Yes, Thank you Agent Fornell." Tim offered humbly._

"_Hope you learned from this McGee." Fornell expressed __with a touch of censure._

"_Oh, believe me, I have." Tim said with self-recrimination._

_Fornell left with the report in hand, leaving Gibbs and Tim alone in the squad room again. "C'mon, McGee, we've got a lock to change__ and one to add.__ We'll stop by the hardware store and pick up__ what we need__. Your landlady can stand to not have the spare key to your apartment __after this. Besides if she doesn't like it, you could just move__."_

"_Thanks Boss, I really appreciate this." Tim offered in surprise and genuine gratitude._

_Gibbs nodded and they headed out with no more said between them for a while._

_Two hours later, the lock had been changed, a deadbolt added and Gibbs had shrugged off Tim's offer for a cooked dinner, citing the need to get home to his own things to do._

_Tim spent the night cleaning up his computer hard-drive, setting up encryptions on his personal files and anything else that needed to be done to better protect his personal information. He'd meant what he'd said; he would never allow this to happen to himself again. Speaking of that, he had some web-sites to visit and check into. He didn't get very much sleep but felt loads better by the time he'd given up and gotten ready for work._

_***End Flashback**_

Blinking to clear his thoughts now, Tim smiled as he braked once he parked and got out, prepared to get started on a brand new day. It felt great knowing he'd done what he could to do the right thing and didn't have the responsibility of being the hard-ass with Nick. After the kid's cocky attitude towards him, Tim doubted Nick would have taken him seriously anyway. He had a feeling that was part of the reason Gibbs had been quick to place this situation squarely in the lap of the Agency who's job it was to deal with this kind of thing anyway.

Settling in behind his desk, Tim powered up his computer, snagged a cold case out of the drawer and got busy going back over it to see if anything new popped out at him and re-running searches for possible fresh leads. This kind of peace and quiet during the work day was hard enough to come by. Several hours working without any harassment or put downs from Tony was pure heaven.

All too soon, the *ding* of the elevator announced that Tim's time of working in complete peace and quiet was over and the work day had begun. Still, he remained on task, not letting anything interfere with the zone he was in; working industrially with no hassles or wasted time.

"McGee. What are you doing here so early?" Gibbs asked in irritation mixed with a just a hint of concern.

"Couldn't sleep, Boss. Needed to be doing something constructive. Having the road to myself all the way here didn't hurt, either." Tim said with a tiny grin.

"Don't make a habit of this, McGee." The boss scolded sternly.

"I won't." Tim vowed.

Gibbs nodded and headed up the stairs to begin his day.

In what seemed like mere minutes, the floor began to fill up with noise of the incoming shift of agents and support people alike. Somehow, Tim managed to remain on track and almost completely submerged in his own little world of searching and going over details and clues; old and possible new ones alike.

"Good morning, McGee." Ziva greeted him as she settled in behind her desk.

Tim stopped what he was doing and looked over at her, "Oh, hey. Good morning, Ziva."

"Have you been here all night?"

"Oh, no. No, just a couple of hours."

"Why?"

"Heh, Gibbs asked me the same thing. I just couldn't sleep. It's always great to drive in with little or no traffic and to be able to sit here and work without the incredible noise we usually work in."

"Incredible noise?"

"Yeah. It's hard to realize it when you get so used to it. But when you're here by yourself and there's not another soul around to make noise, the difference is astounding."

"Yes, I imagine it would be. I believe I have had more than enough silence. I much prefer the noise that offers proof that there is life around you."

Tim frowned. He hadn't meant it that way. "Ziva…"

"It is quiet alright, McGee. I understand. I am sure that for you extra time without Tony harassing you is most pleasant of a break." She offered with a smile.

"Yeah. Exactly." Tim answered with a smile of his own in return.

The *ding* of the elevator interrupted their conversation and Tim smiled at her again before returning his attention to his work. He was in no mood to deal with anything from Tony this morning and wasn't about to leave himself open to the older man's bullishness.

"Good morning, Zee-vah!" Tony gushed, obviously in a great mood.

"Good morning, Tony." She answered him.

Before anything else could be said, Ziva's phone rang. After a quick moment on the phone, she excused herself and headed to the back stairs.

"So, Probie, did we learn anything yesterday, pray tell?"

Tim pointedly ignored the question but did offer a sliver of politeness. "Morning, Tony."

"What? No answer for my question?"

"I've got an answer for you, DiNozzo. Where the hell's the case file you were supposed to sign and get to the Director last night before you left outta here?" Gibbs barked as he strolled in behind Tony.

"Boss?"

"With me, DiNozzo!" Gibbs ordered as he led the way out of the squad room toward the back elevator.

Settling in at the table in a conference room he'd taken them to, Gibbs waited for Tony to take his seat.

"Tell me why the case file you were supposed to approve and sign and date the night before this case landed in our laps; wasn't signed until the next morning, DiNozzo."

"Boss, I… Okay, since Mctattle tale's already told you, I didn't answer his calls or return them because I was busy. Look, I knew it was him and that it wasn't important. The messages he left said he was calling just to have me sign a case report that could be signed in the morning, Boss. It wasn't like it was an emergency! Can't believe he went to you with that!"

"McGee didn't tell me anything, DiNozzo. You just told on yourself. You just admitted that you've decided you have enough Seniority to break my rules."

"Boss? What rule have I broken?" Tony asked in shock

"Never be unreachable, DiNozzo. " the boss reminded him with unmistakeable irritation at having to issue the reminder of the age-old rule that every one of his team members knew and knew better than they knew their own phone numbers.

"Boss, I'm always reachable when you call me." Tony defended himself.

"Rule isn't exclusive to my calls, DiNozzo. Supposed to be reachable by the team. Plenty of times I tell McGee or Ziva to call you. You know that. You don't wear dumb very well, Tony." _Apparently, that the Italian had been thinking way too much of himself and his Seniority on the team for a while now_. "Think this team revolves around you, do ya, DiNozzo?"

"What? No, Boss!" Tony hotly denied.

"No? What was last night about? You just decided it was okay to cut from work and run out and play with a half-pint criminal in sneakers just because he gave you another excuse to laugh your ass off at your teammate? And you decided you had the right to let McGee off that same hook?"

"C'mon, Boss, you gotta admit it was funny!" Tony grinned.

"I'm not laughin', DiNozzo! You read this and then tell me what you find so funny about it." Gibbs directed as he handed Tony an altered version of Tim's report.

This version had Tony's name where Tim's belonged; purely for a wake up call for Tony. The boss had done it up for good measure, such as this, to get through to his Senior Agent; that his behavior had not been fitting for his role as Senior Field Agent of this team. NCIS had higher standards. Gibbs had higher standards and DiNozzo knew it.

When Tony had finished reading the report, he looked up at Gibbs and offered: "Sorry, Boss. You're right. It's not funny."

"Glad we got that straight." Gibbs answered as he stood up and headed out of the room with Tony right behind him. As they walked back toward the squad room, Gibbs had one more thing to say. "Ever pull that stunt of not answering your phone for your teammates again, DiNozzo and you'll be on desk duty for a month."

"Sorry, Boss. It won't happen again." Tony promised, having gotten the message loud and clear.

"I know." The boss answered knowingly.

Tony spent the remainder of the day, ticked off at Tim and even more ticked off at himself. He should have known McGee wouldn't rat him out. In all the years they've worked together, Tim had never been a rat; no matter what Tony ever pulled on him. It didn't ease his anger about the situation though; the rebuff from the boss was too fresh and raw. Seeing Tim happily ensconced in his own little world of working through a cold case only served to fan the flame of Tony's anger. He longed to lash out but with no opening for it, he was stuck suffering in silence.

Tim knew Tony was pissed but had no idea about what and wasn't about to stick his neck out asking what it was about just to have the older man chop it off, as he had a propensity to do. There weren't many times Tim was willing to offer any sympathy to Tony since he usually just got snarky with him in return for his trouble. He was also loathe to break the quiet and so he opted to keep his mouth shut and finish out the day staying out of harm's way. Besides, the only guess Tim had was that it had to do with Tim coming to his sense last night and going off on both him and Nick. And if that's what Tony's mood was from; there was no way in hell, Tim was gonna apologize for any of it. Tony would have to just suck it up and get over it. _Hmm. Wasn't' that what he was always telling Tim to do whenever Tony treated him like crap? Wow, talk about Karma!_

By the time the end of the day came, Tim was more than ready to leave, wanting to get home. He had more to do than he had time to get it done, but he was willing to give it all he had, especially since they were off tomorrow, the first weekend they'd had off in over two months.

"Plans for the weekend, Tony?" Ziva asked as they all walked out together.

"Nope. Gonna sit home and enjoy an endless marathon of cult movie classics with all the pizza and beer I could ask for." Tony gloated. "Finally! A free weekend!"

"That sounds… pleasant." Ziva joked as she smiled at Tim and shared a smirk with Gibbs.

"Why? What's going on? Wait, Boss? Something going on I should know about?" Tony demanded.

"Dunno, DiNozzo, you'll have to ask McGee." Gibbs answered with a straight face.

"Alright, McQuiet all day. Spill it!" the older man ordered with his normal assumption of authority over Tim thrown in his tone.

"Nothing important, Tony." Tim evaded answering him.

"Probie! I'm hurt! You don't me to know what you're up to, but it clearly involves the rest of the team. Let me guess, even the Autopsy Gremlin's in on it, right? And Ducky and Abby, too?"

"Tony, it's not like that! Jeez! Alright! I've asked them to help me get packed and moved this weekend. That's all." Tim threw out there in aggravation, knowing he wouldn't drop it or stop trying to make Tim feel guilty for not giving him the information he was after.

"And the reason you didn't ask me?" Tony asked petulantly.

"I think you can figure that out for yourself, Tony. You're a pretty intelligent guy." Tim answered dryly.

"Wow! What crawled up your ass, McCranky?" Tony asked spitefully.

"Tony, don't." Tim bit out angrily as he kept his eyes on the older man. "That's exactly why I didn't ask you! "

"McGoo! You need me!" Tony gushed in a complete turn around in attitude and an attempt to be encouraging.

"Your help would be greatly appreciated Tony. It's your attitude that's not." Tim answered pointedly. "If you're willing to help without throwing any of this in my face, I'd really appreciate your help."

"Ouch. You suddenly grow some claws, there, Probie?"

As they reached the parking garage and the elevator doors opened up, Tim walked out with the rest of them, "If it keeps you from going overboard, sure." Came the surprisingly bold answer that had Ziva and Gibbs both smirking.

"Fair enough. I'd like to help. So, tell me, Nick's shenanigans chase you out?" Tony quipped. "Suddenly you need new neighbors and a new landlady?"

"Not quite." Tim answered with a hint of sarcasm.

"Ah, don't tell me. You got too comfortable there and need fresh faces to _not_ get to know." Tony joked.

"I don't." Tim quipped with a straight face. "But Jethro does."

_~~FINIS~~~_


End file.
